Depression

Depression is defined as a mood disorder that can cause a person to become very sad and it could affect how a person thinks, eats, sleeps, or even the way a person does their daily activities.  It can affect anyone at anytime and sometimes, it won’t be obvious to the people around them.  Recently, there was a singer that took his own life because he was dealing with depression.  However, his wife posted a video of him from a day prior to his death where he was hanging out with his family and he looked very happy.  But what people didn’t know was that he was suffering from major depression.  Sometimes, though, there are signs that we can pick up on to help someone if you think they might be depressed.  If you see that a person is:

• constantly sad
• always feeling hopeless or helpless
• you notice that their energy level is always low
• their eating habit changes where they don’t eat as much
• they talk about suicide or death
• their sleeping habit changes (they might oversleep or don’t sleep at all)
• they move or talk slower

Just remember that a depressed person might not experience any of these signs.  If you suspect that a friend or a family member is experiencing depression, try to talk to them to see if they need your help.  You can always help someone just by talking to them or just simply by being a friend.  _____________________________________________